Ever thought every top JavaScript project on GitHub is a gem? Not quite.
There’s a barrier though – some are stars on GitHub but duds in real-world use.
I’ve rolled up my sleeves, diving deep into GitHub stars to find the real MVPs.
Here’s a table summary of the projects by start rating:
1. airbnb/javascript
Contributors: 498
Forks: 26.1k
Issues: 90
Pull Requests: 73
Stars: 141k
What it is: This GitHub page is where you can find guidelines for writing JavaScript code. It tells you how to write code that looks clean and works well.
It’s like a rulebook for writing JavaScript programs, made by Airbnb, the company that lets people rent out their homes. So, if you’re a programmer using JavaScript, this guide helps you write better code.
2. sveltejs/svelte
Contributors: 669
Forks: 3.9k
Issues: 901
Pull Requests: 86
Stars: 75.8k
What it is: Svelte is a tool for building web apps. It changes your app’s written code into efficient JavaScript. This JavaScript then updates the web page smoothly.
It’s like a smart tool that makes your app run faster and better. You can learn more and even help improve it if you want.
3. jgraph/drawio-desktop
Contributors: 13
Forks: 4.7k
Issues: 172
Pull Requests: 0
Stars: 46k
What it is: Draw.io Desktop is a free app for drawing diagrams and whiteboards. It’s built with Electron, a tool for creating desktop apps using web technologies. The app is designed to work offline, focusing on security and privacy.
You can download it from their GitHub page to start creating diagrams on your computer without an internet connection.
4. zloirock/core-js
Contributors: 123
Forks: 1.6k
Issues: 31
Pull Requests: 6
Stars: 23.7k
What it is: Core-js is a JavaScript library that offers a bunch of polyfills. These polyfills cover new JavaScript features for older browsers. Think of it as a bridge that allows modern JavaScript to work on old browsers too.
It includes fixes for common issues and supports features from future JavaScript versions. For anyone developing web applications, it helps make sure things work smoothly across different environments.
5. SBoudrias/Inquirer.js
Contributors: 207
Forks: 1.2k
Issues: 188
Pull Requests: 4
Stars: 19.2k
What it is: Inquirer.js is a tool for creating interactive command line interfaces. It lets you ask users questions, get inputs, make selections, and more, directly in the terminal.
This makes it easier for developers to create user-friendly command line tools and scripts. You can customize the types of questions and how users interact with your application.
6. wekan/wekan
Contributors: 254
Forks: 2.8k
Issues: 553
Pull Requests: 1
Stars: 19k
What it is: WeKan is an open-source Kanban board application, allowing for collaborative project and task management. It supports personal to-dos, holiday planning, and team projects, offering a visual overview to enhance productivity.
You can install WeKan on your own devices for data privacy, with support for numerous platforms and translations into about 105 languages.
7. simple-icons/simple-icons
Contributors: 658
Forks: 2.4k
Issues: 461
Pull Requests: 86
Stars: 17.8k
What it is: Simple Icons provides over 3000 free SVG icons for popular brands, available for download from their website or through various package managers.
It’s designed for developers and creators who need brand logos for their projects, with a focus on ease of use and accessibility. The project is open source, inviting contributions and improvements from the community.
8. KaTeX/KaTeX
Contributors: 149
Forks: 1.1k
Issues: 375
Pull Requests: 43
Stars: 17.6k
What it is: KaTeX is a fast JavaScript library for rendering math on the web. It’s designed to work quickly, creating high-quality math typesetting like LaTeX. KaTeX works on all major browsers and can render math synchronously without needing to reflow the page.
It’s great for including mathematical expressions in web pages, and it supports server-side rendering too.
9. plotly/plotly.js
Contributors: 225
Forks: 1.4k
Issues: 1.5k
Pull Requests: 43
Stars: 16.4k
What it is: Plotly.js is an open-source JavaScript library for creating a wide variety of interactive data visualizations. It supports numerous chart types like statistical charts, 3D graphs, and financial charts.
Developers can integrate Plotly.js into web projects to display complex data in an understandable and visually appealing way. It’s part of the Plotly ecosystem, which also includes tools for Python and R.
10. yjs/yjs
Contributors: 90
Forks: 530
Issues: 85
Pull Requests: 5
Stars: 14.6k
What it is: Yjs is a JavaScript framework that allows developers to build collaborative applications, where users can work together in real time, like in Google Docs.
It supports various types of data, such as text, arrays, and maps, and ensures that changes made by different users are merged seamlessly, without conflicts.
Yjs is network-agnostic, meaning it can work over different network protocols, and integrates easily with existing web applications to enable real-time collaboration.
11. MetaMask/metamask-extension
Contributors: 458
Forks: 4.5k
Issues: 1.6k
Pull Requests: 172
Stars: 11.3k
What it is: The MetaMask browser extension is a tool for accessing Ethereum blockchain-enabled websites directly from your browser. It allows users to manage their identities on different sites and sign blockchain transactions with ease.
12. decomfe/vue-echarts
Contributors: 10
Forks: 1.5k
Issues: 5
Pull Requests: 1
Stars: 9.1k
What it is: Vue-ECharts is a Vue.js component wrapper for Apache ECharts, a powerful charting and visualization library. It allows Vue developers to easily incorporate ECharts into their applications, providing a simple way to create interactive and dynamic charts.
This GitHub repository hosts the source code, documentation, and examples for integrating ECharts using Vue.js.
13. ckeditor/ckeditor5
Contributors: 120
Forks: 3.6k
Issues: 1.2k
Pull Requests: 70
Stars: 8.1k
What it is: CKEditor 5 is a modern JavaScript rich-text editor. It has a modular architecture, allowing for a wide range of editing solutions and collaborative features. The project, developed in TypeScript, supports integration with modern web development tools.
It’s designed for creating various types of WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editors, from document editors to platforms similar to Google Docs.
14. artilleryio/artillery
Contributors: 121
Forks: 477
Issues: 362
Pull Requests: 62
Stars: 7.4k
What is it: Artillery is a tool for cloud-scale load testing, designed to work serverlessly and distributed right out of the box. It supports testing various systems like HTTP APIs, WebSocket, GraphQL, and more, using any Node.js module.
It’s particularly useful for simulating user behavior under heavy load, making it easier to spot potential performance issues before they affect users.
15. WebGoat/WebGoat
Contributors: 106
Forks: 5k
Issues: 37
Pull Requests: 13
Stars: 6.4k
What it is: WebGoat is an intentionally insecure web application created by OWASP for educational purposes. It’s designed to teach web application security lessons by demonstrating common security flaws. Users can learn about application security and penetration testing techniques.
It comes with a warning: running it makes your machine vulnerable, so it’s advised to use it in a safe, controlled environment.
Github JavaScript Rating Methodology
To identify top JavaScript projects on GitHub, the methodology involved examining projects based on their star ratings. This process began by exploring GitHub for JavaScript projects with a high number of stars, indicating community approval.
Additional criteria such as the number of contributors, forks, issues, and pull requests were considered to understand the project’s activity level and community engagement.
By analyzing these metrics, the list was curated to highlight projects demonstrating significant impact, utility, and popularity within the developer community.
Conclusion
Exploring GitHub reveals that not every popular JavaScript project is a perfect fit for every scenario. Through meticulous examination of projects with high star ratings, I’ve distinguished those truly exceptional, demonstrating practical utility beyond their GitHub fame.
This journey highlights the diverse utility these projects offer, from guidelines for cleaner code to tools for web app development and collaborative applications, emphasizing that real-world applicability often transcends GitHub popularity.